Less than a third of PhDs get tenure-track jobs. The vast majority of PhDs are left to figure out the labyrinth of a non-academic job market on their own. Yet, the industry job market is far from the panacea it was touted to be: intense competition, mass layoffs, dwindling job security, lack of intellectual rigor, lack of time freedom, discriminatory treatment of international job candidates. This talk will take an honest look at the challenges faced by PhDs in both academia and industry. We will explore ways to design a fulfilling career that provides financial stability for doing what you enjoy.

Date & Time

Aug 28, 2025 at 5:30 PM Eastern Time (US and Canada)

Speaker:

Kaidi Wu, Founder, Academic Trailblazer

I help PhDs create the careers they want beyond academia. At 16, I booked a one-way flight to the U.S. to study to become a concert pianist. I obtained my piano performance degree from the University of Michigan, went on to receive my PhD in social psychology, and completed my postdoc at UC San Diego. Faced with an abysmal job market in the middle of a pandemic, I did what every other academic did: breaking into industry and getting myself a good ol’ 9-to-5. I worked at Amazon, Meta, and Match. I was rewarded with a great salary. I was also deeply unfulfilled. I discovered a world of people living life outside the box, academics outside of traditional academia, who create and attract opportunities that come to them, not the other way around. I realized: Wealth is abundant. Paths are infinite. You are in the driver’s seat of designing the life you want to live. I am here to help you see your PhD has tremendous value beyond the traditional career paths we have been sold.

Registration

Register here